Tamil Nadu political crisis: TVK threatens mass resignation as governor blocks Thalapathy Vijay from forming government

Tamil Nadu is in the grip of a full-blown constitutional crisis after the Governor refused to invite actor-politician Vijay's Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) to form a government despite it winning 108 seats and emerging as the single-largest party. This comes as rival parties huddle behind closed doors to explore alternatives that would effectively deny TVK the power it believes the public mandate has conferred on it. The TVK has responded with a stark threat: if either the DMK or AIADMK attempts to stake claim to the government, every TVK MLA, all 108 of them will resign. The warning came after reports confirmed that top DMK figures are actively considering a scenario in which AIADMK chief E Palaniswami becomes Chief Minister with DMK's outside support, an arrangement that would unite two parties that have spent decades as bitter rivals, and that would shut out the party that received the most votes.

Governor denies TVK chance to form government without proven majority

Governor RV Arlekar met Vijay for the second time in two days on Thursday (May 7), and again declined to allow him to proceed. The Governor's position is that TVK has not demonstrated it commands a majority, and he has insisted Vijay produce letters of support from 118 legislators, the threshold required to form government, before any swearing-in ceremony is arranged. TVK currently has 108 seats, plus five more with Congress's five MLAs already in its corner and negotiations underway with Left parties and smaller outfits for the remaining numbers. The party is now reportedly considering approaching the courts.

"The requisite majority support in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly, essential for forming the Government, has not been established," Raj Bhavan said in a communique.

'Inappropriate'

Constitutional experts and TVK's allies have pushed back hard on the Governor's stance. The CPI called it "inappropriate," citing the Supreme Court's landmark SR Bommai judgment, which established that the floor of the assembly, not the Governor's office, is the proper place to test a majority.

Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) chief Thol Thirumavalavan was pointed in his criticism. "The Governor cannot demand a list of people supporting TVK. He cannot say, 'Who is supporting you? Bring 118 and prove it to me, then come for the swearing-in ceremony.'" The outgoing DMK called the Governor's decision "unacceptable" and "a disrespect" to the mandate. Actor Kamal Haasan also voiced public support for Vijay.

What are DMK and AIDMK up to?

Within the DMK, however, the picture is more complicated. The party passed four resolutions Thursday, including one authorising chief MK Stalin to take "emergency decisions," and asked all its MLAs to remain in Chennai until May 10. Top party sources confirmed to NDTV that a Palaniswami-led government with DMK support is being actively discussed, driven in part by fears among younger party leaders, particularly those aligned with Udhayanidhi Stalin, that if Vijay takes power, he could dominate Tamil Nadu politics for a generation the way MGR did, keeping the DMK out of power for as long as he remained active. Older DMK leaders, including Stalin himself, are said to be less convinced, worried about the public backlash of such an unlikely alliance.

The AIADMK, for its part, has told its 45-plus MLAs to wait and observe. While a section within the party is open to aligning with TVK, senior leadership has firmly ruled it out. Palaniswami told his MLAs Thursday there is no relation between TVK and AIADMK and no question of poaching at this point, asking them to remain calm for at least two more days.

The coming 48 hours are likely to be decisive. TVK is racing to assemble the numbers it needs to satisfy the Governor. Its opponents are racing to find an arrangement that prevents that from happening. And somewhere in the middle, Tamil Nadu's electorate is waiting to find out whether the verdict it delivered at the polls will actually determine who governs the state.